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For Immediate Release

Are Gender and Ethnicity Risk Factors for Metabolic Syndrome in Children?

New Rochelle, NY, January 30, 2013—Metabolic syndrome is more likely to affect children who are obese than overweight or non-overweight and who have other characteristics associated with the disorder, such as high blood pressure or insulin resistance. A new comprehensive and systematic review of the medical literature on metabolic syndrome in children that probed deeper to evaluate the risk associated with gender, ethnicity, and geography was published in Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders website.

The authors found significant differences in metabolic syndrome prevalence for boys versus girls and for older compared to younger children. Some evidence suggested that there may also be an association between ethnicity and region of the world where a child lives and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome—a possible link that warrants further study.

“The authors should be lauded for their comprehensive and careful review of a group that has been largely ignored, which is children," says Ishwarlal (Kenny) Jialal, MD, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal and Director of the Laboratory for Atherosclerosis and Metabolic Research and Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of California, Davis Medical Center (Sacramento). "They clearly show that increasing age, male sex, and adiposity are risk factors for metabolic syndrome in children. They also emphasize the need for future studies to confirm the reported increased prevalence in certain ethnic groups."

About the JournalMetabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders is the only peer-reviewed journal focusing exclusively on the pathophysiology, recognition, and treatment of metabolic syndrome. The Journal covers a range of topics including insulin resistance, central obesity, glucose intolerance, dyslipidemia with elevated triglycerides, predominance of small dense LDL-cholesterol particles, hypertension, endothelial dysfunction, and oxidative stress and inflammation. Complete tables of content and a sample issues may be viewed on the Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders website.

About the PublisherMary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Childhood Obesity, Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, and Thyroid. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 70 journals, newsmagazines, and books is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.